There has been a lot in the news about fake news, which could get one caught in a vicious cycle about wondering if the news about fake news is fake which I guess would prove the whole point of the concern in the first place.

Well this blog post is off to quite a start…

In a blog post dated October 2008, I wrote about a study that demonstrated that books can control one’s mind as powerfully as television.  This of course makes me realise the weight of the responsibility of being an author.  But also, it makes me realise that I need to be quite careful when it comes to what I read—which leads to another recently hot topic, that of the echo chamber.

In this same post from 2008, I wrote about how it isn’t the medium per say that makes one vulnerable to brainwashing, but rather the way that the medium is consumed.  I’m not sure about this anymore.  Intelligent and healthy media consumption can mitigate the effects of unhealthy media, but, much like the consumption of junk food, only to a certain extent.  Furthermore, in an era where personalization algorithms used by companies like Google and Facebook create and strengthen our echo chambers, consumption of media can reinforce negative patterns of thought rather than help us break through them.

This is of course a huge problem for those of us who have made a lifetime commitment to better ourselves daily and are attempting to understand reality in its fullness, rather than only according to our own, limited lens.  The only thing sustainable I can think of doing to counter all of this at this time is to take less time reading and more time analysing; that is to say, to take the time to think more deeply about what we are reading, to figure out what our assumptions are, and to start thinking about what other alternative ways of thinking exist.

Other than that, I don’t really know—and would appreciate suggestions!

{ Sahar’s Blog is all about being in a constant state of learning.  So it only made sense for me to go back to all my previous posts and see how my thoughts on certain topics have changed over the last nine years.  In this new, ongoing series of posts, I’ll be rereading some of my older posts and reflecting on the same topic in light of what I’ve learned since then.  It’s going to be very interesting to see how things have changed! }